The Newly Sworn-In Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin has hinted that he will use his experience garnered in Parliament to serve the interest of Ghanaians and the country.
According to him, he has learned a lot over the years adding, it will help shape him as Speaker of the 8th Parliament of the 4th Republic.
Mr. Bagbin was voted Speaker of the 8th Parliament of the 4th Republic on January 7, 2021.
He got 138 votes while the former Speaker of Parliament, Mr. Oquaye got 136.
Although the factions from the opposition were shocked at the outcome of the results, some were silently laughing and happy adding Mike Oquaye deserved to be axed.
Addressing the Parliamentarians on Thursday morning, the new Speaker of Parliament said "I will submit myself to the will of this house and pledge to serve my dear country and the people of Ghana faithfully to the best of my ability. I will also discharge my duty as Speaker of this parliament. I want to promise wholeheartedly to put as the disposal of this country the store of knowledge, experience, and the huge data I have accumulated over the 28 years that I have been a member."
It will be recalled that Mr. Alban Bagbin, was chosen by the NDC after he had served 28 years in Parliament
ThinkNews Online has also gathered that Mr. Alban Bagbin has been the longest-serving Member of Parliament after taking over the Nadowli West constituency in the Upper West Region of Ghana in 1992 till 2020.
Mr. Alban Bagbin has held numerous positions in Parliament since 1994 and capped his lawmaking career with the ultimate, the Majority Leader and Leader of the House.
In the first Parliament of the Fourth Republic, he rose to the Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Subsidiary Legislation and Vice Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Mines and Energy and Member of the Committee on Local Government and Rural Development.
From 1995 to date, Mr. Bagbin has been a member of a group known as Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA) and a member of the International Law and Human Rights Programme of the PGA. From 1996 to 2001, he was appointed Chairman of the Advisory Committee on the Restructuring of the Water Sector (Ministry of Works and Housing) while between 1997 and 2001, he was a member of the National Media Commission.
In the Second Parliament of the Fourth Republic, Mr. Bagbin was the Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs with oversight responsibilities for the Commission of Human Rights and Administrative Justice, Electoral Commission, National Commission on Civic Education, Office of Parliament and Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs.
He later claimed the title of Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee from 2001 to 2005 and Vice-Chairman of the Appointments Committee of Parliament.
Story by: Joshua Kwabena Smith
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